Ellie McCutcheon:

I stayed at the Thanka Center during a one-month study on Tibetan music and culture. I loved the welcoming atmosphere! Daily meals with all the students, monks, and other staff and residents were really fun. It was a great place to stay, and has more to offer than your average guesthouse. It was nice to have the option of Tibetan classes three times a week, and I enjoyed my lessons on Buddhism from the live-in reincarnate lama. I was there in November, however, and it would have been nice to have hot showers in my bathroom. Electric blankets are also recommended during this time of year!

Kathryn Coster:

The Thangka Center is a great place to live and study. I stayed in the dorms for about three weeks in the beginning of winter, and my only complaint was that there was no hot water for showers, though there can be if you ask Big Dakpa to plug in the solar panels on the roof. The environment is peaceful and the people very warm and friendly. I only studied the Tibetan Language at the Thanga Center, but I thoroughly enjoyed attending class. The food is good and blankets are warm; I especially like the bunk bed style living with a bathroom conveniently inside the building.

Kris Lau 2010-10-10:

Living and teaching at the Thangka Academy has been a rewarding and irreplaceable experience. The environment here is extremely welcoming and friendly, and the students are an enthusiastic, fun group of people. Shangri-la is a terrific place to live – the quaint Old Town and Tibetan culture give it distinct personality, and the surrounding mountains and villages provide great biking, hiking and exploring opportunities. I feel so lucky to have gotten the opportunity to live and work here, and will definitely miss the fresh mountain air as well as the hospitality and community when I leave!

Alice, 26, July from France:

"The month that I've spent at the Tangka Center (Thangka Academy) was one of the most amazing experiences in my life. The people there were so friendly and welcoming that it felt like being at home. We shared knowledge and laughter on a daily basis and I learnt a lot about Tibetan culture, the art of Tangka and Buddhism. Everyone was always eager to help and always with a smile. The Tangka Academy is a wonderful place to discover, set in the astonishing scenery of Shangri La, and all the amazing people you'll meet there make it even more worth going to! It was such a brilliant experience that I highly recommend to anyone who's willing to go that far to go and study at the Tangka Academy!!"

Erin Hoshibata , Hawaii, USA

University: The University of Puget Sound (Tacoma, Washington, USA:

"My experience at the Thangka Academy was one of intense cultural, academic, and spiritual discovery. For three weeks, I studied Thangka painting, Tibetan Buddhism, and the Tibetan language for independent undergraduate research through the School of International Training. A unique institution, the Thangka Academy's mission to educate both visitors and the local community about traditional Tibetan culture is genuine and effective.

I learned many things about Tibetan culture from Teacher Lobsang Khedup, whose wisdom resonates in my head and will continue to do so for many years to come. Living and learning conditions at the Center were adequate, with the surrounding Old Town and Tibetan Buddhist temples of Shangri-La providing a relatively serene living environment. With patience, discipline, and a love for learning new things, prospective students will find the Thangka Academy and the town of Shangri-La itself to be places of discovery."

John Collins Zinda, USA:

"Each morning, the chill of the plateau gives way to warmth as we join the students for breakfast, everyone brimming with enthusiasm for the day ahead. It's a community suffused with friendly spirit. Nestled deep in old town, the Center is a welcome refuge from the clamor of the county town, and its inhabitants are some of the finest people here."

Elisa Collins Zinda, USA:

"The Thangka Academy Academy is full of joyful and hardworking students, and I feel lucky to be among them for a few months."

Zeben Kopchak:

Shangri-la is a very beautiful area with high mountains, a picturesque Old Town along with temples and monasteries to visit. Living at the Thangka Academy was a great experience; the accommodations are simple but cozy and the surrounding area of Shangri-la has much to offer. The real treasure of the Academy though is not its surroundings but its people.

Even if you lack strong (or even any) Tibetan or Chinese language skills you will feel very welcome; it also may come as a surprise to you at how strongly you can connect with another human being without too much verbal communication. Lama Khedup, the master at the Academy, is wise and compassionate and the Tibetan students at the center are very friendly and open about their culture.

I found that being at the Thangka Academy was not only a time to reflect personally, as you participate in morning chanting or an evening Tibetan Buddhism class with the master, but also an opportunity to increase my intercultural understanding.

David Harmon:

"Studying with Master Lobsang Khedup was a true privilege. From early in the morning to late in the evening, his concern and support of his students is a testament to his vow--to preserve Tibetan culture and help all sentient beings. Learning both Tibetan language and Buddhism from this master, I feel that I have learned a great deal not just about both of these topics, but about life in general. I do believe that this has been a life-changing experience, and that these changes are all for the better. I am grateful that the causes and conditions were appropriate to meet him and all of those who have made the Shangri-La Cultural Center a success. Thank you to all of those who made my time studying with the SIT program even more rewarding!"